High-Fructose Corn Syrup
HFCS Is in Everything From Cereal to Soda to Bacon
Harmless Sweetener or Obesity Culprit?
50-50 Critics say Americans’ intake of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which accounts for almost half the sweetener used in the U.S., has led to obesity. Others say HFCS is no worse than sugar: that both are harmful in large amounts. Who is right?
Semi-Sweet One thing is indisputable: HFCS is cheaper to produce than sugar. But at what cost to the environment? The vast amount of corn needed to make it weakens topsoil and adds chemicals to watersheds.
38 Pounds HFCS is so pervasive, Americans consume 38 pounds of it a year in foods and drinks. That's 11 teaspoons a day! Eating whole foods and cooking from scratch are two ways to prevent over-consumption.